1. Set The Standard
Three home games.
Three wins.
And tonight, the Flames will try and keep their feet on the accelerator as they entertain the Kings at the Scotiabank Saddledome. GET TICKETS
The recent results have made for plenty of smiles on the ice and in the stands, but for this Calgary group, there's more at play. The end goal is to finish the season on a high. To build chemistry and culture. And to ensure the emergent young core here is chock full of valuable experience come the new season next fall.
Ryan Strome scored the overtime goal Sunday against Tampa to run the Flames' winning streak to three games. It was the type of play - driven by a young, burgeoning star in Matvei Gridin - that the C of Red could get used to seeing.
But Strome's been around. His 900-plus NHL games, and four previous NHL stops are proof positive of that. And in that lengthy hockey journey, the 32-year-old has seen just about everything. It's that experience that will prove so valuable for this group as it continues to grow.
At the forefront of that worldview, a realization that winning matters. Even if the end goal isn't about placement in the standings.
"It’s really, really hard to snap your fingers and just become a winning hockey team. If you throw these games away, you don’t compete, you don’t play hard, those habits leak into next year," Strome opined post-game Sunday. "Then all of a sudden you have a group that’s like ‘OK, we gotta start winning,’ and you don’t have the characteristics, you don’t have those qualities, and the leadership and all those things that it takes.
"Hypothetically, it’d be great to have the first-overall pick, and you can guarantee this and that. But it’s a team game, there’s a lot of guys in here playing for jobs, playing for their life, and that’s important. The team’s trying to build a culture and a confidence moving forward. I think the traits that we’re showing now are great things that will bleed into next season."
An honest answer, from a player that's exuded no shortage of character and commitment since landing in Calgary just over two weeks ago.
Strome said Sunday that he's found rejuvenation in this new role with the Flames. One of mentor, leader and confidant.
Those happy fist-bumps at the end aren't bad, either.
"There’s good leadership in this dressing room and guys are competing hard,' he said. "Obviously, everyone’s aware of the situation we’re in, but it’s a measuring stick sometimes, these games against some of these teams.
"Winning’s fun. With these young guys, I think winning is important to have some confidence, and keep pushing forward to the end of the year."
